The non-conference portion of the ACC basketball season ended in familiar fashion Wednesday night. Duke won with defense, Miami beat a quality opponent, Georgia Tech bested a lightweight, and Florida State endured a disappointing loss.

The lone outlier was Wake Forest’s victory over Xavier, the Deacons’ first over a team ranked among the top 150 on the RPI.

So as the conference schedule beckons this weekend, every ACC team has a winning record. But only a few are well-positioned to make the NCAA tournament.

In the league’s final year with nine teams, six earned NCAA bids. In eight subsequent post-expansion seasons, the ACC exceeded that total only twice.

Only four of the ACC’s 12 teams are ranked among the top 50 of the Rating Percentage Index, updated daily at realtimerpi.com and used by the NCAA selection committee. Worse, five conference teams, including Virginia and Virginia Tech, are below No. 125.

Conversely, unbeaten Duke is a consensus No. 1 — human polls and RPI — despite a diabolical schedule ranked the nation’s toughest. Setbacks against Oklahoma State and undefeated Michigan aside, preseason ACC favorite North Carolina State has bordered on as good as advertised.

Miami has overcome personnel losses and appears capable of making its first NCAA appearance in five years. Georgia Tech and Maryland may prove pleasant surprises, though both have been largely untested by tame non-conference schedules.

A team-by-team assessment, in RPI order:

DUKE (13-0, No. 1 RPI): Led by seniors Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry, all five starters average in double figures, with Plumlee, the ACC’s No. 2 scorer (18.8 points per game) and top rebounder (11.2 per game), developing the skills to match his athleticism. Perhaps as satisfying to Mike Krzyzewski, the Blue Devils are limiting opponents to 38.2 percent shooting, far better than last season’s 43.3. Duke defeated Davidson 67-50 Wednesday and opens ACC play Saturday against Wake Forest. The Devils’ non-conference conquests include Ohio State, Minnesota, Louisville, Kentucky, Temple and VCU.

N.C. STATE (11-2, No. 13): The Wolfpack leads the nation in field goal percentage at 53.5 and, like Duke, can score from every position. Freshmen T.J. Warren and Rodney Purvis appear to be meshing well with veterans such as C.J. Leslie and Lorenzo Brown as State seeks back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances for the first time since 1985 and ’86 under Jim Valvano. The Wolfpack’s No. 13 RPI is based on quality wins over Massachusetts, Connecticut and Stanford. State plays at Boston College on Saturday and hosts Duke a week later.

MIAMI (9-3, No. 15): Wednesday’s 76-59 victory over LaSalle, the Hurricanes’ fourth top-100 win, snapped a two-game losing streak that coincided with center Reggie Johnson’s absence. He’s out 6-8 weeks with a broken left thumb. Fellow seniors Kenny Kadji and Durand Scott — he missed the first three games on NCAA suspension for accepting extra benefits — and sophomore point guard Shane Larkin will have to hold Miami together until his return. Last year’s 9-7 ACC record was the Hurricanes’ first above .500 in eight years of membership. They open at Georgia Tech on Saturday.

NORTH CAROLINA (10-3, No. 27): The Tar Heels’ most recent game, Saturday’s 79-73 victory over 20th-ranked UNLV, was arguably their best. Wings Dexter Strickland and P.J. Hairston led five double-figure scorers, while freshman point guard Marcus Paige committed only two turnovers. As expected, forward James Michael McAdoo leads Carolina in scoring, but he should be shooting better than 46.4 percent. Far more perimeter-oriented than usual, the Tar Heels will be an interesting test for Virginia’s blanket defense in the ACC opener for both Sunday in Charlottesville.

MARYLAND (12-1, No. 70): Of the Terps’ 12 wins since an opening loss to Kentucky, only two — George Mason and Stony Brook — are over top-100 opponents. Hence the low RPI and No. 282 strength-of-schedule. Ten players are averaging between 11 and 25 minutes, so it will be interesting to see if Mark Turgeon pares his rotation during league play. Seven-foot-one Alex Len is Maryland’s top scorer and most intriguing presence, and the ACC’s No. 2 shot-blocker. The Terps lead the league in rebounding margin and are fourth nationally in offensive rebounding, according to kenpom.com. They host Virginia Tech on Saturday.

FLORIDA STATE (8-5, No. 99): The Seminoles’ run of four consecutive NCAA bids and winning ACC seasons is in serious jeopardy. Wednesday’s 78-72 loss at Auburn was FSU’s second to a team below 200 on the RPI — South Alabama was the other — and such defeats are resume killers. The issue is defense. League-leaders in opponents’ field-goal percentage the last four years, the Seminoles are 10th this season. All-ACC guard Michael Snaer remains FSU’s cornerstone. The ‘Noles open Saturday at Clemson.

GEORGIA TECH (10-2, No. 108): A 74-58 victory Wednesday over Chattanooga was the Yellow Jackets’ eighth against a team below 200 on the RPI, hardly the way to win friends on the NCAA selection committee. In its lone game against the top 50, Tech lost at Illinois by 13. That said, after four losing records in the last five years, including a grim 11-20 last season, this start is encouraging. No Yellow Jacket is averaging more than 11.5 points, and freshmen Marcus Georges-Hunt and Robert Carter are the top scorers.

VIRGINIA TECH (9-4, No. 138): The Hokies were dreadful defensively in recent losses to Colorado State (88-52) and BYU (97-71), the most points they have yielded in consecutive games since 2003. The ACC’s top scorer (24.4 points per game), Erick Green had his first poor shooting game against BYU (4-of-17), and on such days, Tech has little chance against top-shelf opponents. Rookie coach James Johnson needs freshman Marshall Wood to recover ASAP from his foot injury and Cadarian Raines to emerge from his recent funk.

BOSTON COLLEGE (8-5, No. 141): Considering last season’s 8-22 record, this start is cause for optimism in Chestnut Hill. Riding a five-game winning streak, the Eagles are scoring more, rebounding better and shooting more accurately than last year, a sure formula for improvement, though they did lose to neighboring Harvard of the Ivy League for the fifth straight year. Led by forward Ryan Anderson and guard Olivier Hanlan, the Eagles’ top six scorers are all freshmen and sophomores. Hanlan and fellow rookie guard Joe Rahon have started every game.

VIRGINIA (10-3, No. 158): On the off chance the Cavaliers win enough league games to contend for the NCAA tournament, losses to Delaware (161 RPI) and Old Dominion (299), plus a non-conference schedule ranked 296th, will cost them immeasurably. As always under Tony Bennett, Virginia plays stifling man-to-man defense. Kenpom.com rates the Cavaliers 17th nationally in defensive efficiency and a respectable 79th in offensive efficiency — thank Joe Harris for the latter. Those numbers should improve when senior point guard Jontel Evans returns — he’s out of a walking boot and hopeful of returning Sunday.

WAKE FOREST (7-5, No. 184): Athletic director Ron Wellman insists the program is progressing under third-year coach Jeff Bzdelik, but the Xavier victory was arguably the first tangible evidence this season. Travis McKie and C.J. Harris are the league’s top returning scorers and again headline the Deacons, but among the next six players in the rotation, five are freshmen, led by point guard Codi Miller-McIntyre. Wake has 40 more turnovers than assists, reflective of its youth.

CLEMSON (8-4, No. 199): The Tigers have finished .500 or above in ACC play five consecutive seasons, an unrivaled stretch for them. That’s unlikely to continue. With only two seniors, forwards Devin Booker and Milton Jennings, and no juniors, Clemson appears too young, especially in the backcourt, where last season seniors Tanner Smith and Andre Young were in charge. The Tigers’ No. 311 strength-of-schedule is the ACC’s worst and includes a 25-point loss at Coastal Carolina. Jennings is the team’s most gifted player but remains enigmatic and problematic — he served a two-game suspension after a pot bust.

So Duke and N.C. State are the class of the league, with Miami, North Carolina and Maryland as NCAA tournament probables. Anyone else would be a bonus.

Not so next season, when Pittsburgh, Syracuse and perhaps Notre Dame arrive. Then swap Maryland for Louisville the following year, and the net is college basketball’s largest and strongest conference, one that will make life even more challenging for programs such as Virginia and Virginia Tech.

I can be reached at 247-4636 or by e-mail at dteel@dailypress.com. Follow me at twitter.com/DavidTeelatDP

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